Breaking News Instant updates and real-time market news.

2017-07-14 14:44:15

HIMX

Himax

$8.01

-0.07 (-0.87%)

, SSNLF

Samsung

$2,080.00

(0.00%)

14:44

07/14/17

07/14

14:44

07/14/17

14:44

Himax issues strongly worded rebuke to analyst after downgrade

Himax Technologies (HIMX) responded to a downgrade of its stock by an analyst at Oppenheimer with a strongly worded reply, in which the company said it has not communicated with the analyst in months and questioned the timing of the report. OPPENHEIMER DOWNGRADES: Oppenheimer analyst Andrew Uerkwitz downgraded Himax to Underperform, the firm's lowest rating, with a $4 price target, saying decreased smartphone expectations in China for 2017 will weigh on the company's near-term orders. He added while he expects many new phones to be released in the second half of this year, there will be a shift to 18:9 displays, an area in which he feels Himax lags behind its competitors, and he remains hesitant on the company's Touch and Display Driver Integration, or TDDI, opportunities. Uerkwitz also said forecasts have estimated growing OLED panel shipments but Himax is unlikely to win OLED driver IC business from Samsung (SSNLF) in the near-term. The analyst believes a "smooth" turnaround for Himax's DDIC business is unlikely and notes his estimates for the company have been the lowest on Wall Street for some time. HIMAX RESPONDS: In a statement provided to The Fly, Himax said, "The management have not spoken to the analyst Andrew Uerkwitz from Oppenheimer for three months. Thus, we believe his report recently issued on July 14 is INACCURATE and MISLEADING. This report does not represent the fact of our company at all. Our business is not only on track but also rebounded strongly reflecting market share gain. We will report positively on the 2Q17 earnings call...We question Andrew Uerwitz's intention to set up a low Target Price without facts, especially when Himax just declared dividend where investors only have one week to buy to get dividend. He chose this time to publish a negative report with a ridiculous Target Price without talking to Himax management on the day we announce our EC date is also suspicious." PRICE ACTION: Himax, which spent the early part of the session in negative territory, is up 0.6% to $8.06 in afternoon trading.

Northland analyst Tome Sepenzis said a number of Chinese handset OEM's have slowed down new ordering, particularly in the TDDI segment. The analyst believes there could be some near-term weakness in the small/medium driver business with a pick up later in the year. As a result, Sepenzi believes Himax could report June revenues in the low $150M range, versus consensus of $153M, with potential September guidance lower as well. If the stock weakens in the near-term, Sepenzis would use it as a buying opportunity and reiterates his Outperform rating and $10 price target on Himax.

07/14/17

OPCO

07/14/17DOWNGRADEOPCOUnderperform

Himax downgraded to Underperform from Perform at Oppenheimer

Oppenheimer analyst Andrew Uerkwitz downgraded Himax Technologies to Underperform with a $4 price target. Lowered smartphone expectations in China for 2017 will weigh on the company's near-term orders, Uerkwitz tells investors in a research note. The analyst believes a "smooth" turnaround for Himax's DDIC business is unlikely and notes his estimates for the company have been Street-low for some time.

07/14/17

07/14/17DOWNGRADE

On The Fly: Top five analyst downgrades

Catch up on today's top five analyst downgrades with this list compiled by The Fly: 1. Snap (SNAP) downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at Cowen with analyst John Blackledge lowering his 2017 and longer-term advertising revenue estimates for Snap to reflect a more competitive environment within Digital advertising. He also believes contribution from the company's new advertising monetization products like Direct Response and Self Serve are not likely to be meaningful in the near term. 2. CyberArk (CYBR) was downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Stephens, to Hold from Buy at Deutsche Bank, and to Neutral from Overweight at JPMorgan. 3. At Home Group (HOME) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Goldman Sachs with analyst Matthew Fassler citing valuation with the shares up 82% since his upgrade to Buy on November 30, 2016. 4. A10 Networks (ATEN) downgraded to Sector Weight from Overweight at KeyBanc with analyst Alex Kurtz citing "substantially" lower projected growth rates following the company's weaker than expected preliminary second quarter results. 5. Himax (HIMX) downgraded to Underperform from Perform at Oppenheimer with analyst Andrew Uerkwitz saying lowered smartphone expectations in China for 2017 will weigh on the company's near-term orders. This list is just a portion of The Fly's full analyst coverage. To see The Fly's full Street Research coverage, click here.

SSNLFSamsung

$2,080.00

(0.00%)

04/28/17

NEED

04/28/17NO CHANGETarget $108NEEDBuy

Skyworks price target raised to $108 from $92 at Needham

Needham analyst N. Quinn Bolton raised his price target for Skyworks (SWKS) to $108 from $92 after the company delivered another beat and raise quarter driven by content gains at Huawei and Samsung (SSNLF) and issued a strong outlook for the rest of 2017. The analyst reiterates a Buy rating on the Skyworks' shares.

04/28/17

CHLM

04/28/17NO CHANGETarget $120CHLMBuy

Skyworks price target raised to $120 from $110 at Craig-Hallum

Craig-Hallum analyst Anthony Stoss raised his price target for Skyworks (SWKS) to $120 from $110 after the company reported results and guidance above estimates driven by content expansion in Samsung's (SSNLF) Galaxy S8 and at Huawei, and continued strength in its Internet of Things business. The analyst reiterates a Buy rating on the shares.

Morgan Stanley analyst Katy Huberty reported that the firm's recent survey of 1,000 U.S. consumers shows a rising iPhone retention rate, with 92% of iPhone owners who see upgrading their phone in the next 12 months saying they plan to stick to an iPhone, up from the 86% retention rate in last year's survey. Apple's (AAPL) 92% loyalty rate "dwarfs" that of all other vendors, with its biggest competitor, Samsung (SSNLF), seeing a 77% retention rate, she noted. Huberty, who sees Apple being positioned to gain increasing U.S. smartphone share, raised her price target on Apple to $177 from $161 and keeps an Overweight rating on the stock.

07/07/17

ADAM

07/07/17NO CHANGETarget $180ADAMBuy

Apple iPhone sales improved later in the quarter, says Canaccord

Canaccord Genuity analyst T. Michael Walkley says his firm's June North American smartphone surveys indicated "steady" sales of Apple's (AAPL) iPhone 7 through the June quarter. Sales were "stable to improving" later in the quarter as enthusiasm for Samsung's (SSNLF) Galaxy S8 waned in the U.S. market, Walkley tells investors in a research note. The analyst adds that his iPhone unit estimates for the June and September quarters are consistent with consensus expectations at 42M and 47M units, respectively. He expects a stronger iPhone upgrade cycle in 2018 with the 10-year anniversary iPhone 8. The analyst reiterates a Buy rating on Apple with a $180 price target. The iPhone maker closed yesterday down $1.36 to $142.73.